The No. 8/8 University of Cincinnati men’s basketball team plays host to New Mexico on Thursday at Fifth Third Arena. The contest tips at 9 p.m. ET and will be televised by ESPN2. It is also available on 102.7 WEBN-FM.

The Bearcats are 12-0 for the second time in three seasons and the eighth time in school history after defeating Wright State 68-58 on Dec. 22. JaQuon Parker tied a season-high with 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting with a trio of three-pointers. Titus Rubles added 11 points and nine rebounds. Sean Kilpatrick had 12 points, six rebounds and four assists.

New Mexico (12-1) suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday when it fell short at home to South Dakota State 70-65. Chad Adams led the Lobos with 21 points while Tony Snell added 13 points.

This is the first meeting in series history.

Game at a GlanceSeries Info: First meeting in series history. Coaches:Mick Cronin is in his seventh season at Cincinnati (125-88); 10th season overall (194-112). Steve Alford is in his sixth season at New Mexico (138-47); 22nd season overall (446-230).Rankings: Cincinnati is ranked No. 8 in both the AP and USA Today polls this week. New Mexico is receiving votes in both polls.Radio: 102.7 WEBN-FM; Mo Egger provides play-by-play with color analyst Chuck Machock.TV: ESPN2; John Saunders provides play-by-play with color analyst Bob Knight. Aaron Stojkov produces. Anthony DeMarco directs.UC Twitter Page: @GoBEARCATS

Scouting New Mexico-New Mexico is led by junior guard Kendall Williams who averages 14.8 points, 5.0 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals. He was a second-team All-Mountain West selection last season.-Junior guard Tony Snell ranks second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.6 points and has a team high 20 three-pointers. He was both an honorable mention All-Mountain West and Mountain West All-Tournament honoree last season.-Sophomore center Alex Kirk averages 10.9 points while leading the squad in rebounds (7.5 rpg) and blocks (1.2 bpg). -New Mexico was picked to finish third in a preseason poll of Mountain West Conference teams behind San Diego State and UNLV. -The Lobos were 8-3 away from home last season and are 2-0 on the road in 2012-13. -The Lobos finished the 2011-12 campaign 28-7 overall and tied for first in the Mountain West Conference with a 10-4 record. New Mexico lost to Louisville 59-56 in the third round of the NCAA Championship.